Recent studies have indicated that the blood glucose level of rats with streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes (type 1) is normalized without an increase in the plasma insulin level by administration of sodium orthovanadate in the drinking water. The mechanism of this insulin-like effect of vanadate is unknown. In this study, we investigated whether vanadyl ion, which is less toxic than vanadate to rats, also has an insulin-like effect in rats with STZ-induced diabetes. When rats with STZ-induced diabetes were given a daily i.p. injection of vanadyl sulphate (9.3 and 4.6 mg vanadium/kg body weight), their blood glucose level decreased from about 22.2 to about 7.2 mmol glucose/l within 2 days and remained low for at least 12 weeks. This treatment did not affect their low plasma insulin level. Quantitative electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrometry showed that most of the vanadium (about 90%) in their tissues was present as a vanadyl form (VO2+). ESR analysis also showed that the vanadyl ion in tissues was bound endogenously with four oxygen ligands from either water or oxyamino acid residues in proteins. Vanadyl sulphate accelerated glucose incorporation into adipocytes of rats, suggesting that the action of vanadyl ion is peripheral. Interestingly, vanadyl sulphate at a high concentration (about 10 mmol/l) was more effective than insulin in enhancing glucose uptake. This study demonstrated that: (1) vanadyl sulphate (+4 oxidation state), like vanadate ion, normalizes the blood glucose levels of rats with STZ-induced diabetes; (2) the action of vanadyl ion is peripheral; and (3) the active form of vanadium for an insulin-like effect may be a vanadyl form, not vanadate.

Studies were conducted to define the natural host range of the Korean henorrhagic fever (KHF) agent in South Korea, and to identify colonized rodents susceptibl64o this infection. Eight species of field rodents were captured in areas of Korea endemic for yKHF and their tissues were examined by immunofluorescence for the presence of KHF antigen. One hundred and fourteen of 817 Apodemus agrarius coreae captured between 1974 and 1978 had one or more positive organs. No positive organ was found in 239 rodents of the other seven species examined. Two hundred and thirty-eight specimens of Apodemus agrarius Ck jejuensis captured on Jeju Island, an area thought to be free of disease, were also negative. Attempted laboratory infection of nine species of rodents captured in the field but maintained in the laboratory was successful only in the two subspecies of Apodemus. The 46 specimens of A. a. jejuensis tested in this manner were all uniformly susceptible to infection as determined by immunofluorescence. Serial sacrifice of experimentally infected A. a. jejuensis revealed viremia of short duration terminating on day 10 postinfection. In contrast, other tissues of this animal, including lung, kidney, liver and parotid gland were positive on day 10 and remained so through the 100-day observation period. When 12 species of colonized laboratory rodents were inoculated with KHF agent five were found to develop KHF antibody by indirect immunofluorescence and two, Calomys callosus and Apodemus agrarius ningpoensis, developed detectable KHF antigen in their tissues. The first successful isolation and propagation demic areas of disease on the Korean peninsula, LA.) of the etiologic agent of Korean hemorrhagic fever was demonstrated utilizing the indirect fluores-... i (KHF) was described in a previous communicacent antibody (IFA) technique and human KHF 1 tion. The presence of KHF agent-specific antigen convalescent sera. Numerous isolations of the in frozen sections of various tissues of Apodemus agent have been made from rodents of this agrarius coreae, a vesper mouse indigenous to en-species, and successive passage of the agent in a boow-on_ subspecies, Apodemus agrarius jejuensis captured in areas free of natural disease, has been report

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Thirteen patients with adult-onset vitamin E deficiency due to fat malabsorption were investigated clinically and electrophysiologically. These patients had slightly or moderately decreased serum vitamin E (1.7-4.8 micrograms/ml, normal less than 6.0) or vitamin E/cholesterol ratio (0.21-0.31 mg/g, normal less than 0.35). Only one patient had typical neurological manifestations of vitamin E deficiency, which improved with supplementary vitamin E. The pathological findings in this patient were also compatible with vitamin E deficiency. This patient had poorly controlled diabetes mellitus due to advanced chronic pancreatitis. Reviewing previously reported cases of vitamin E deficiency with diabetes mellitus in chronic pancreatitis, the duration of deficiency until the onset of symptoms was shorter than in those cases without complications. Although adult patients with early, slight deficiency of vitamin E are generally asymptomatic, patients with diabetes mellitus tend to have early neurological symptoms. The vitamin E tolerance test should be used, because even in some patients with vitamin E deficiency due to malabsorption, the deficiency can be overcome by large oral doses of vitamin E.

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